Padmasambhava, with ineffable wisdom and compassion, bestowed this precious phowa practice and then concealed it until it could be revealed by the Great Treasure Revealer Chokgyur Dechen Zhikpo Lingpa (1829-70) for the sake of modern practitioners who can ill-afford the time to perfect the profound sacred dharma. There are merely three realized masters between Guru Rinpoche and H.E. 4th Tsikey Chokling Rinpoche, the fourth reincarnation of Chokgyur Lingpa. Hence, this particular practice is from a truly pure, short, profound and blessed lineage untainted by broken commitments and degenerations.

The Guru of Oddiyana himself praised Phowa as follows:Everyone knows about Buddhahood through meditationBut I know a path without meditation.

According to a student who attended the 2011 International Phowa Retreat in Malaysia, ‟It was an amazing experience for everyone, even for those who have known and followed Rinpoche for a long time. While the organizers planned for the retreat to last for five days, which is already shorter than most other Phowa retreats, with Rinpoche’s kind and remarkable blessings all participants received the sign of success within two and a half days!”

According Mahayana Buddhism’s Pure Land Sutra, Amitabha Buddha’s pure land or buddhafield exists in the westerly direction. It arose from the power of one of the most astonishing and unique vows borne from the infinite compassion of Amitabha while still a bodhisattva or a buddha-in-training, that if he became enlightened he must actualize the ability to emanate a pure land where any sentient being who has great faith, devotion to Amitabha Buddha, and compassion to sentient beings can be reborn without regressing back into cyclic existence. At the secret level, Amitabha Buddha’s pure land is actually the pure essence of our mind and hence intrinsic to each and every sentient being. If we can accept this key point then it would make sense that as our mind becomes purer, we will begin to perceive directly that all is divine and perfect.

Reaching Amitabha Buddha’s Western Pure Land of Great Bliss does not automatically free us of the effect of negative actions nor eradicate our obscurations that prevent us from attaining full and complete enlightenment. Otherwise, merely being reborn in Amitabha Buddha’s buddhafield would be the equivalent of buddhahood. As is taught extensively in the Pure Land Sutra, after rebirth in Amitabha’s buddhafield, we easily continue to purify our negativities and reach enlightenment. Because, infinite emanations of Amitabha are present everywhere to turn the wheel of dharma and everything in the environment from the inanimate (like sounds of wind, water, and so forth) to the animate (birds, bees, and so forth) emit sacred sounds of dharma and dharanis that turn our minds towards virtue and practice.

It is taught that four factors help facilitate our rebirth in Amitabha’s Pure Land. Firstly we must have unstinting great compassion known as the heart of enlightenment (or bodhicitta in Sanskrit) towards all sentient beings and one-pointed faith and devotion to Amitabha Buddha especially at the point of our death. Secondly, while facing the westerly direction we must habitually make offerings to Amitabha Buddha, recite his name while visualizing him in the space in front of us, and make one-pointed aspiration prayer to be reborn in the Western Pure Land of Great Bliss, especially when we are dying. Thirdly, we need to dedicate all the merits that we have accumulated towards rebirth in Amitabha’s Pure Land. Finally, every year we should do at least one Amitabha Buddha retreat for at least a day, a long weekend, or a month if possible.

Furthermore, to ensure success and remove obstacles, it is highly recommended that participants accumulate at least 10,000 recitations of the Longevity or Amitayus Buddha mantra: OM AMARANI JIVENTIYE SVAHA.